Apparatus, system, and method for treatment of posterior leaflet prolapse

Abstract

The invention is an apparatus, system, and method for repairing heart valves. A suture line is secured to a papillary muscle, and then passed through a portion of a heart valve leaflet. A reference element is provided at a desired distance from a plane defined by the heart valve annulus. The suture line is secured to the heart valve leaflet at a position adjacent the reference element. The reference element may part of a device configured for placement on or in a heart valve annulus. The reference element may be slidingly secured to the device so that the distance of the reference element from the main body of the device can be varied by a surgeon or other user. The reference element may be a line of suture, which may be pre-installed during manufacture of the device or may be installed by the surgeon or other user.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority to commonly assigned U.S. provisional patent application No. 60 / 694,479 filed Jun. 27, 2005, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to medical devices and particularly to repairing posterior leaflet prolapse in a mitral valve. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] In vertebrate animals, the heart is a hollow muscular organ having four pumping chambers: the left and right atria and the left and right ventricles, each provided with its own one-way valve. The natural heart valves are identified as the aortic, mitral (or bicuspid), tricuspid, and pulmonary, and are each mounted in an annulus comprising dense fibrous rings. The mitral and tricuspid valves have thread-like bands of fibrous tissue that attach to the valve at one end and to the papillary muscles at the other end. [0004] Heart valve disease is ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0015] The invention can include application of a heart valve annuloplasty ring. The annuloplasty ring can reshape the heart valve annulus to a desired shape, and / or prevent the heart valve annulus from further and undesired deformation. The annuloplasty ring can also fix the valve annulus in the systolic position.

Problems solved by technology

Diseased heart valves may be categorized as either stenotic, wherein the valve does not open sufficiently to allow adequate forward flow of blood through the valve, and / or incompetent, wherein the valve does not close completely, causing excessive backward flow of blood through the valve when the valve is closed.

Valve disease can be severely debilitating and even fatal if left untreated.

In many diseased valves, the chordae tendineae are either ruptured, otherwise damaged, or of an improper length.

When chordae tendineae are too long, too short, or otherwise damaged, the corresponding tricuspid or mitral valve to which they are attached typically may fail to close properly.

This can lead to regurgitation, which is the unwanted backflow of blood from a ventricle to an atrium resulting from imperfections in the valve.

When the valve allows such backward flow into an atrium, the corresponding ventricle must pump progressively harder to circulate blood throughout the body, which in turn promotes congestive heart failure.

The techniques for such repair are often complicated due to the difficulties in accessing the surgical site, in identifying the dysfunctional chordae tendineae, and in determining the proper length for the repaired and / or replacement chordae tendineae.

However, the technique is relatively complex and can require the surgeon to make numerous real-time decisions during the course of the procedure, including determining how large to make the resection, whether to perform an annulus plication to close the gap, etc.

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